Billionaire Rick Caruso is sticking with his decision to stay out of the race for Los Angeles mayor, despite raising the prospect he would reconsider following a news report that Mayor Karen Bass asked to soften an after-action investigation into last year’s deadly wildfires. “Rick is incredibly moved by the outpouring of support but reached an earlier decision in a thoughtful process and it stands,” a spokesperson said in emailed message Thursday, a day after Caruso said he was considering entering the race. “He will not be a candidate for mayor.” Bass’s re-election bid has faced renewed scrutiny following the…
Author: Awais
McGowan Allied Specialty Insurance announced a strategic realignment of sales territories within its in-house team designed to enhance services, improve regional coverage, and ensure a more tailored experience for clients across the country. The Ohio-based company said that by reallocating territories among its sales producers, it is strengthening its ability to “respond efficiently to client needs while maintaining deep knowledge of regional markets.” The newly assigned territories are now in effect, the company said. MASI provides entertainment and amusement insurance solutions for amusement parks, waterparks and family entertainment centers.. Topics Excess Surplus New Markets Was this article valuable? Yes No…
NFP Appoints Spencer as SVP, Commercial Risk, Northeast Jack Spencer NFP, an Aon company and property/casualty broker and benefits consultant headquartered in New York City, appointed Jack Spencer as senior vice president, commercial risk, in its Northeast region. Based in West Hartford, Connecticut, Spencer has a decade of experience in commercial risk insurance in the New York City metro area at Arch Insurance Group Inc., where he held several positions, most recently vice president, alternative markets. He led two of Arch’s largest casualty group captives while writing several lines, including workers’ compensation, general liability and auto liability/auto physical damage in…
The 2025 reconciliation law made historic cuts to federal support for health care, including an estimated $911 billion in cuts to federal Medicaid spending, as well as additional reductions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces. As the proposed law moved through Congress, lawmakers expressed concern about the potential effects of those cuts on rural areas. KFF estimated that the reductions to Medicaid alone could be $137 billion over ten years in rural areas. To address those concerns, Congress added $50 billion in funding over a five-year period for a Rural Health Transformation Program (referred to here as the “rural…
Insurance broker WTW reported fourth quarter revenue of $2.94 billion, a decrease of 3% compared to $3.04 billion for the same period in the prior year due to the sale of TRANZACT. Q4 2025 organic revenue growth was 6%, while the FY 2025 saw 5% organic growth, compared with 5% for both Q4 and FY 2024. Net Income for the fourth quarter of 2025 was $736 million compared to $1.25 billion in the prior-year fourth quarter, a decrease of 41%. WTW reported FY revenue of $9.71 billion, a decrease of 2% compared to $9.93 billion for the prior year as…
A natural gas pipeline connecting to the proposed Delfin LNG project located offshore in southwestern Louisiana exploded Tuesday, according to the local emergency preparedness office. The blast on the 28-mile pipeline occurred while operators were performing routine maintenance, said Ashley Buller, assistant director at the Cameron Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness. Operators shut gas flows on the pipeline immediately after the explosion and had to flare the remaining fuel left between the valve and the point of the explosion, Buller said. One pipeline operator was injured, Buller said. Delfin Midstream, which owns the pipeline, could not immediately be reached for…
The global market for insurance-linked securities (ILS) is entering a new phase of stability. Following the key January 1, 2026 reinsurance renewal season, Aditya Dutt, President of Aeolus Capital Management, suggests that the sector has transitioned from a period of high volatility into a more disciplined, self-regulating era.Dutt was recently representing his firm, specialist ILS and reinsurance investment manager Aeolus Capital Management Ltd., during an AM Best hosted webinar that focused on the reinsurance renewals and market outlook. According to Dutt, the recent behaviour of investors signals an “increasing level of sophistication” that has effectively balanced the needs of both…
Florida rate cuts highlight litigation’s role in insurance affordability Wilson has framed tort reform as part of a broader affordability challenge facing the auto insurance sector. Since 2020, physical damage costs have climbed roughly 47%, injury costs have risen about 52%, and uninsured and underinsured motorist claims costs have jumped 72%, according to Allstate. At the same time, industry underwriting profitability remains close to zero. Those pressures, he said, make it essential for regulators and lawmakers to focus on cost drivers rather than short-term price controls.
Ken Griffin and Stephen Ross, who are among the highest-profile billionaires to move to South Florida during the pandemic, are bankrolling a new campaign to get others to follow in their footsteps. The pair is funding a $10 million drive to convince more executives, investors and founders to move to the region. Their “Ambition Accelerated” push, which includes advertising and outreach comparing Miami and environs with northeastern and western US cities, is poised to kick off late Monday. “Miami and the broader South Florida Gold Coast offer deep talent, regulatory clarity and an extraordinary quality of life,” Griffin, founder of…
Trump administration officials traveled to Los Angeles this week to outline the president’s plan to override state and local rules and speed up the permitting process for reconstruction of tens of thousands of homes destroyed by last year’s wildfires. Last week the president signed an executive order that the White House promised would allow homeowners to rebuild without contending with “unnecessary, duplicative, or obstructive” requirements. The plan is to allow federal loan recipients to “self-certify” that they meet all state and local building requirements if their permits aren’t approved within 60 days, Related: Trump Putting Zeldin in Charge of Permits…
A New York man has been arrested and charged for allegedly conspiring to use hacked email accounts of legitimate truck-load carriers to book cargo with shippers and selling the items for illicit profit. Forbes was arrested on Feb. 5 in Long Island, N.Y. and will make his initial appearance in the Eastern District of New York. He will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah B. Foley and Ted E. Docks, Special Agent with the Boston office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, made the announcement. Cargo Theft Losses Surge There has…
The Trump administration’s move to give deportation officials access to Medicaid data is putting hospitals and states in a bind as they weigh whether to alert immigrant patients that their personal information, including home addresses, could be used in efforts to remove them from the country. Warning patients could deter them from signing up for a program called Emergency Medicaid, through which the government reimburses hospitals for the cost of emergency treatment for immigrants who are ineligible for standard Medicaid coverage. But if hospitals don’t disclose that the patients’ information is shared with federal law enforcement, they might not know…
Private foster care agencies in New York face around 800 lawsuits under the Child Victims Act, according to a survey by the Council of Family and Child Caring Agencies. In nearly 40% of those cases, the insurance policy in place at the time has since been voided, leaving agencies responsible for full settlement costs.
For the secretive billionaire Besnier family, the recent recall of potentially dangerous infant formula made by its nearly century-old firm brings an uncomfortable feeling of deja vu. Just eight years ago, the French clan behind Groupe Lactalis, the world’s biggest dairy company, and its chief executive officer — third-generation scion Emmanuel Besnier — faced another crisis after dozens of infants who consumed formula produced at one of its plants in western France were poisoned by salmonella. Lactalis was criticized for acting too slowly and charged for failing to recall the product, deception and involuntary injuries. The case is ongoing. Now,…